WhistlePig 6 Year PiggyBack Rye

Neat. Neck pour. Mild on the nose. Rye spice and dill leaning. Hint of apple. Hint of vanilla. Nice texture. Not creamy, not thin. Sweet Apple cider in the tongue. Gosh I like that more than I expected. The apple, cinnamon, vanilla and rye spices are quite balanced and distinctive. Legs are decent, mostly the dill leaning rye elements. I wasn’t expecting to like this as much as I do. I heard this was disappointing neat but I dig those apples. I think this is delicious!

Dave Pickerell designed Piggyback for bartenders and cocktails in 2018 shortly before his passing. The pig in the logo on the bottle wears a Stetson rather than the typical top hat in honor of Dave. The bottle design is also different from most of the WhistlePig line to make it easier to pour. It has a 100% rye mash bill sourced from WhistlePig’s original source, Alberta Distillery in Calgary. It is aged for 6 years and bottled at 96.56 proof. PiggyBack has an amber tone and a cinnamon and peppercorn nose. The rye produces a powerful spicy flavor with hints of cocoa. Some woody notes intermingle with the smooth rye as the finish trails with vanilla and spices.

Smooooth rye

Probably better used in a mix drink. Not good neat.

Nose: pine, dill weed, vanilla, apple, ginger Palate: vanilla, oak, pine, cardamom, good burn, slight rye spice, pear sweetness, cinnamon Finish: pine, citrus rind, oak, lasting burn